A review by destdest
Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour

funny lighthearted tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

For this story, I think the humor would translate better on film, whether TV or movie. It comes off dry, awkward, and slightly offensive in writing. I get where the jokes are coming from; it’s like The Office meets Sorry to Bother You meets Boondocks vibes, but the execution is all over the place.

Darren/Buck was insufferable. It’s hard to root for him when he starts talking to everyone like dirt. Majority of the Sumwunner guys act like frat boys meets Wallstreet. Rhett was interesting, but I hated Clyde soooo much. Please stick a foot up his behind and push him down a stairway. If you read the story, you’ll want to kick his teeth in too. 

In addition,  the female characters outside of the mom and some aspects of Rose leave a lot to be desired. Sorry to be vulgar: But Soraya’s just there to be the voice of reason and hop on Darren’s dick. And Jason you hating ho, why are you here? I feel like he helped push Darren away. He was too defensive and hating so hard even before Darren lost his way.

The microaggressions get heavy and gaslighting abounds in this satire about Corporate America and startups. There are some clever digs at work culture and companies who pretend to care about diversity, but ultimately, this one wasn’t for me. 
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